After the fatal fire in the Stern Bar in Graz on New Year’s Eve, eyewitnesses describe their experiences: Silvia and Thomas Weinhandl were just able to escape. They talk about the anxious moments and bad memories on television.
The devastating fire on the night of January 1st in the popular Graz Stern Bar was more than a week ago. A fire broke out there before four a.m. and blocked the exit. Two of the eyewitnesses who made it out of the smoke-filled basement in time spoke on the ORF program “Thema” on Monday evening. “You hear people screaming, see the flames and just think: For God’s sake, how many are still in there?” says Silvia Weinhandl, who was in the restaurant with her husband and friends. She describes the moment when the fire started broke out: “I said: ‘Darling, there’s a fire.’ He shouted: ‘Everyone get out of there, there’s a fire!’ Then panic broke out.” Her husband Thomas pushed the pregnant woman toward the exit. The group was able to escape through the front door of the restaurant, only moments later the path was blocked by flames. Shortly afterwards, meter-high flames shot out of the entrance to the bar. A video shows Thomas Weinhandl trying to break a window. “It was smoking, endlessly.” Because of this, too few guests found the emergency exit in time. 31 firefighters wearing respiratory protection saved the people with a human chain. Many were unconscious.21-year-old died of smoke poisoning For a 21-year-old from Lower Austria who was celebrating the New Year with friends in Graz, any help came too late. It was also a big shock for the Weinhandls when they received this information. “My husband then had a slight breakdown because he realized we couldn’t save the girl. “That was very bad for him,” Silvia Weinhandl remembers in the show. Even a week after the fire, she often thinks back to New Year’s Eve and the smell. “Thoughts keep coming up. We wish the people who are still in the hospital that they will get well again. That is the most important thing.” Three of the victims are still being treated at the Graz University Hospital. The fire caused a total of 21 injuries. The State Criminal Police Office is still investigating the cause of the fire. “The fire quickly spread to plastic decorative material,” said police spokesman Fritz Grundnig about the status of the investigation. The toxic gases could lead to rapid unconsciousness, the report says.
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